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Hey guys, just letting you know I’m starting up a new account: laurieandthings.wordpress.com
I’m still going to have This vs. That posts, but will have a bit more freedom to update you on other topics and fashion related articles!

Halloween is a capitalized holiday, especially in a college town like Iowa City. Local businesses offer incentives to visit their establishments, like cash prizes awarded to the best costume…all the more reason to make a unique one yourself!

Halloween is the holiday that allows you to dress up and be someone or something else for the night. What comes to mind is children dressed up trick or treating and carved pumpkins on home doorsteps. But Iowa City, a college town who takes holidays to another level, turns it into a four day event with extravagant decorations and incentives to visit local businesses. The weekend before and including Monday the 31st, college students dressed up in both store bought and homemade costumes. Making your own costume can be time consuming, expensive (if you don’t know where to shop) and just not worth it when you can buy a fully equipped outfit at Hot Topic. Why make your own costume you ask? “I’d say the best reason to make your own costume is that nobody else will have it,” Andy Jensen, Halloween enthusiast, said. Jensen who has devoted time and creativity to his Halloween costumes for the past five years takes costume making extremely seriously, and can’t bare the thought of having to buy a prepackaged outfit. He has been Skeeter from the TV show Doug, a loaf of Wonder Bread, Tim Dwight, among others in the past. His best effort though went into a Big Bird costume he made for this year’s Hallows Eve.

How To Make Your Own Big Bird Costume:

Jensen decided to make this costume as he was dubbed “Big Bird” in high school for his height and blonde hair combo. He bought most of the materials at Jo-Ann Fabrics & Crafts in Iowa City. First, he purchased a few yards of thin fleece fabric (in yellow, of course) for the body. He sewed that up at home making sure there were holes for his head, arms and legs. He pasted on yellow feather boas all over his bodysuit he also found at the fabric store. He also bought a styrofoam cone which he shaped to be a beak; wrapping extra fleece fabric around it to hold in place. He really got creative for his shoes– Jensen formed paper mache over old tennis, using cardboard as a buffer between the shoes and paper. He used duct tape to hold it in place. Once the material dried he again used left over fleece material to give them a yellow glow. Using the yellow fleece yet again, he sewed yellow gloves or wings I should say. He came upon orange tights from Ragstock, downtown Iowa City, “I was too tall so I had to cut them into single leg tights,” he said. He used pink rope from the same store to wind around each leg. His final purchase, which was his most expensive at $16, was a yellow feather wig off Amazon.com. Finishing touches to the Big Bird were simply yellow face paint and a good attitude! Overall Jensen said his costume cost around $70, but is worth way more than that to him, “It’s just cool in the fact that you made it yourself,” he said. Tip: always use extra scraps of material you bought, it will save you money and will definitely take your look up a notch by adding little things. (Jensen used extra scraps for shoe covers, beak cover, and gloves.)

Taking the time to make your own costume comes with personal satisfaction and in some cases, cash prizes. Many bars in the Iowa City area offered cash prizes for best costumes on Saturday the 28 and some on actual Halloween night, Monday the 31. Deadwood hosted Halloween bashes both Saturday and Monday nights. Each day they set aside $200 for best dressed–$100 to the best male costume and $100 to the best female costume. “A group of zombies won and split the proceeds,” Andrew, a bartender at Deadwood, said of Monday night. This just goes to show that a great costume has the potential to break all of the rules. The bartender also disclosed the bar was at maximum capacity Saturday, 218 people, with “a one in one out rule”. Bars and restaurants in the Iowa City area stay competitive by giving away prizes on a busy holiday like Halloween. But not all bars give away cash prizes. That doesn’t phase UI student Courtney Lenane though, “I’ve never tried to win anything,” she said, “I just go out with my friends and get drink deals.” She is in luck as many venues have incentives that are not a competition to receive, like drink specials, live music and dance parties. If you’re anything like me though, you’ll simply enjoy the decorations, halloween themed music and people watching. Check out what you missed this past Halloween on “Where You Should Have Been this Halloween”. Most places tend to have the same type of deals every year, so keep them in mind for places to hit up next year!

Where You Should Have Been this Halloween:

Click here to go to the interactive map, which shows you addresses and locations in relation to each other.

The Airliner: $500 cash prize went to the best costume on Saturday night (28), decided by the Bar & Grill’s manager.

Brother’s Bar & Grill: This franchise bar held a costume contest the Saturday before the 31st. $600 total was split up between 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners.

Deadwood: $100 cash prizes given to best dressed male and the best dressed female for both Saturday the 29th and Monday the 31st.

The Englert Theatre: Showed the Rocky Horror Picture Show at midnight on Saturday the 29th. Read this article by Brianna Johnson to learn more about the movie, it may inspire you to go next year!

Macbride Hall–Natural History Museum: Every year UI’s natural history museum decorates the exhibit for Halloween. The community really comes together as local families are known to bring their kids. It’s a great change of pace to your regular Halloween activities.

The Mill: This bar and eatery is known for hosting live music from local talents every Halloween. So of course they rounded up bands for Friday the 28th.

Sports Column: No costume specials but when you accept the fact that you most likely won’t win the big bugs why not save money on drink specials at SpoCo with $3 Big Beers and $3 Three Olives Vodka drinks. (No cover!)

The Union Bar: Let’s be honest people like to let loose on Halloween and where else to do it than on the dance floor of the biggest bar in the big10…all the incentive is already there.

Wildwood Smokehouse & Saloon: Saturday night before Halloween they hosted the Robby Michael Band. This bar is on the east side of Iowa City but worth the drive–it has a mechanical bull!

The Yacht Club: This hidden bar (in the alley by Sports Column) held Halloween parties Friday, Saturday and Sunday before the 31st featuring Dead Larry and Roster McCabe–all for only $6 admission each night!

Halloween: Night of the Flapper

Mara Hilgenberg, as a flapper, expresses her feelings toward all Hallows Eve. The slideshow takes place in downtown Iowa City at local bars including Martinis, The Airliner and Brothers Bar & Grill.

You can’t go wrong with neutral colored nails. A nice manicured clear or light pink is easy going and pretty. The good thing about a natural/nude color is they’re not as high maintenance as colored because chipping is not as noticeable. But this winter rich dark colors are in, and can be played up as an accessory to an outfit. If you take the time to do your nails the right way–with a base, two layers of color and a top coat–your nails can look newly polished and chip free for a week and a half or two before any noticeable deterioration.

My favorite brands are essie and OPI. These are both carried at Trade Secret. I find these have high quality colors that are less likely to chip and crackle. Always apply a clear top coat over colors to give it a polished look, and to prevent chipping and staining your nails. My favorite color from essie’s winter collection is called “size matters” described as, “a blazing hot ruby red”. And another great color for this time of year is OPI’s “Lincoln Park After Dark”. It’s a dark, pretty purple that will go with your darker coats and outfits this season.

But if you’re someone who dances to your own beat you might consider Nicki Minaj’s collection by OPI. She has six funky colors, including lots of sparkles!

PS- What do you think about men wearing nail polish? EvolutionMan has put out a line specifically for the guys…click here to learn more.

Knee high and over the knee socks are booming back into stock, replacing the traditional tights you may wear with an outfit. This classic school girl look is actually pretty cute and fun to play up. You can pair them with anything– heels, flats or boots. For this time of year, in the midwest, I would pair the socks with penny loafers or tall riding boots. You can buy knee highs/over the knee socks at H&M, TopShop, Target, and mytights.com. Complete the look with a tan or patterned skirt or sleek black shorts, a tank and cardigan. I love this look shown in American Apparel (left). You also have a lot of options with socks–texture wise. Wear thick durable knit socks for cold weather, or thin breathable nylons for a bit warmer weather. Essentially you’ll get the same overall look, but it’s fun to play with texture when appropriate. Also, there are many different designs and colors on socks, mytights.com has a lot of options so check out their website. This photo from H&M has a cool spin on the style–wearing both tights and knee high socks. This model displays thin nylon tights with a pattern, layered under solid black knit knee highs.

Is it worth getting feather hair extensions professionally placed over doing it yourself?

In my opinion… no way!

Although salons place the feathers for you and take walk-in appointments, it’s just not worth the money to me. Depending on where you go, and the individual who places the feathers in your hair, you never know how long the extension will stay put. It could potentially fall out within a week or two which is not reliable enough for the money. Most credible salons around the Iowa City area charge around $40 for a three-pack of skinny feathers. This is why doing it yourself is less risky and more worth it.

Photo courtesy of Etsy, Inc.

How to DIY:

First, you will need to purchase feathers. To shop online for feathers you should visit Artwear Miami. Here you can find both feather extensions and clips. Feather clips are great if you don’t want to commit to clamping in a bundle of feathers that may last for a month or two. So, after you purchase your feathers you will need a hair clamp to keep them secured to your hair. (Clamps come with feather purchases from Artwear Miami.) The round, aluminum clamp resembles a bead and is lined with silicone to help it stick in your hair. You’ll want to weave your hair and feathers through the bead and fasten everything together using pliers. The pliers will squish the bead/clamp flat. This keeps the hair and feathers tight, and this step alone determines how long they will stay put. (i.e. the tighter you fasten the bead the longer everything will stay secure.)

Where to place your feathers:

When placing your feathers you should consider two things: look and comfort. In order to come up with the perfect placement you need to have a balance between the two. If you want it on the outside of your hair, I suggest using a clip that you can take in and out daily. Otherwise, if you use the semi-permanent clamp extension, I advise you to put it underneath your hair, just behind the ear. This way you can see the extension when your hair is down or up in a pony tail, and your head won’t ache from the metal bead resting between your head and your pillow.

Here is a great tutorial on youtube that walks you through the steps on how to master the art of putting feather hair extensions in yourself!

NOTE: These are in alphabetical order and are not rated individually because they all offer something unique! Click here to go to the map and find out where each store is located in relation to each other.

Active Endeavors: located at 138 S Clinton Street. This store is targeted to the outdoor enthusiast, selling winter apparel, hiking boots, sleeping bags, etc. They carry brands such as Patagonia and The North Face. (Don’t know which brand one to buy? Check back in a couple days for my next post comparing Patagonia and TNF jackets.)

InBox: located at 114 S Clinton Street. The owner buys some of her apparrel from U.K. brands–you know what that means, they are always on top of trends! Don’t be afraid to try on a fringey shirt or holey leggings, you may surprise yourself and will be ahead of the pack in terms of fashion.

Iowa Book: located at 8 S Clinton Street, right across for the Old Capitol building. Haven’t you heard the commercial? “Iowa Book… It’s a one of a kind book store.” Yes, yes it is–tons of Hawkeye gear including the Victoria’s Secret line.

Catherine’s: located at 7 S Dubuque Street. Catherine’s is a bit more pricey than the rest of these stores so I’d only go here for nice quality designer jean–they carry 7 For All Mankind, J Brand and Hudson Jeans.

Cheap & Chic: located at 105 S Dubuque Street. This store is actually owned by the same people who run Catherine’s just down the block. Always check this place before Catherine’s as they sell some of the same things here…FOR LESS! Definitely a place to go for a reasonably priced cute shirt.

Dulcinea: located at 2 S. Dubuque Street. This corner store always has a variety of dresses in stock. If you’re looking for anything from a babydoll dress to a floor length dress check here.

Raygun: located in the pedestrian mall at 103 East College Street, this funky shop makes funny T-shirts featuring Iowa. For example a popular one is: “Iowa City: all of the creativity went into its name. You can also have them print your own designs.

Silver Spider: located in the Old Capitol Mall at 201 S Clinton Street #154. JEWELRY JEWELRY JEWELRY! This place has it ALL. No joke, anything you could want is at this place. And don’t forget to add an inappropriate magnet to your bag when you go to check out.

Textiles: located in the Pedestrian Mall at 109 S Dubuque Street. This store targets a bit of an older crowed i.e. not college students, more like college students’ moms. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pop in to check out their Hobo International handbags and belts, they also always have a huge stock of scarves!

A go to earring for me has always been the classic stud. Basic silver/gold ball or diamond studs are so versatile, they are simple enough to wear daytime and sophisticated enough for night wear. Studs will always be in though, so when a new trend arises its nice to mix up or traditional look. Two new trends are long feather earrings and wrap around earrings.

The statement feather earring is best worn in just one ear. To offset the feather wear your hair in a low side ponytail like Jessica Szohr, below. (Photo courtesy of Glamour.com) Jessica is most famous for her role in Gossip Girl. Click here to find a similar black feather earring to this one from Hot Topic.

Another fun trend is the wrap around earring–which should be worn with your hair pulled back so you can fully see the design. There are a lot of crazy designs that wrap around your entire ear, and look like they’d weigh your ears down. Here’s a simple version of a wrap around earring:

Vera Bradley and Longchamp produce two of the most popular tote bags among college aged women. I decided to compare the two brands after seeing countless ladies on the Iowa campus with one or the other:

Longchamp is known for its traditional classic style. You will always find a leather strap, gold button, small inner pocket and zipper for their signature line–Le Pliage. This bag is waterproof and comes in a variety of colors. They are mostly solid colors but sometimes stray to a simple design. Size is approximately: 12″ x 12″ x 7.5″ Cost: $145

Vera Bradley has branded its bags with bold, recognizable prints. They are cotton quilted which gives an appealing texture. The tote is equipped with six pockets and a toggle closure. Rough size dimensions: 19″ x 15″ x 6″ with an 11″ strap Cost: $80

Although the Vera Bradley tote costs less, I think you get a bigger bang for you buck with Longchamp. Because Longchamp has a waterproof aspect, this is more ideal for every day wear and tear, and its easily cleaned inside and out with a wet washcloth. Also a huge plus to the bag is that it folds up into a tiny, relatively flat package so it’s great to take on vacation. And of course, I’m a big fan of Longchamp’s simple, elegant style. Their totes never go out of fashion and they match with more outfits as they are solid colors.

I would recommend Vera Bradley for travel luggage–they would be extremely easy to spot at the airport!